VITAL SIGNS: OUTCOMES; Alcohol Is Tied to Lower Risk Of One Type of Kidney Cancer

By Nicholas Bakalar

Published: May 22, 2007

CORRECTION APPENDED

Scientists have discovered yet another reason that alcohol might be good for you. Using pooled data from 12 studies and more than 750,000 subjects, researchers found that moderate alcohol consumption -- about a drink a day -- is associated with a decreased risk of renal cell carcinoma, one type of kidney cancer.

The paper, which will appear in the June 16 issue of The Journal of the National Cancer Institute, covered only prospective studies that involved at least 25 cases of renal cell cancer, that assessed long-term intake of a variety of foods and beverages, and that included information on nondietary factors. During the 7- to 20-year follow-up, researchers found 1,430 cases of renal cell cancer.

The researchers found that people who drank two-tenths of an ounce to one-half an ounce of alcohol a day -- beer, wine or liquor -- reduced their risk of renal cell cancer by 18 percent, and those who drank a half-ounce or more reduced their risk by 28 percent. There is about a half-ounce of alcohol in 1 1/2 ounces of hard liquor, 12 ounces of beer or a 5-ounce glass of wine.

The study had limitations in that it lacked a measure of alcohol use over time, depended on self-reports and had no information on family history of renal cell cancer.

Jung Eun Lee, the lead author and a fellow at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, would not encourage anyone to start drinking. Rather, she said, maintaining a healthy weight and avoiding smoking are essential as the ''principal means to reduce renal cell cancer.''

Correction: May 23, 2007, Wednesday
A brief article in Science Times yesterday about a study showing that alcohol consumption can lower the risk of one type of kidney cancer misstated the publication date. It appeared in the May 16 issue of The Journal of the National Cancer Institute; it is not scheduled to be published in the June 16 issue.